The Bouchard-Taylor commission (named for its two co-chairmen), officially the Quebec Consultation Commission on Accommodation Practices Related to Cultural Differences, was created on 8 February 2007 by
Quebec premier
The premier of Quebec ( (masculine) or eminine is the head of government of the Canadian province of Quebec. The current premier of Quebec is François Legault of the Coalition Avenir Québec, sworn in on October 18, 2018, following that ...
Jean Charest. Its mandate was to examine questions related to
reasonable accommodation
A reasonable accommodation is an adjustment made in a system to accommodate or make fair the same system for an individual based on a proven need. That need can vary. Accommodations can be religious, physical, mental or emotional, academic, or em ...
allowed because of cultural or religious differences in
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
.
The commission was chaired by philosopher
Charles Taylor and historian and sociologist
Gérard Bouchard. Its final report was made public on 22 May 2008, and the commission wound up its operations on 18 June 2008.
The commission conducted hearings in various Quebec regions. The committee listened to individuals, organizations, and so-called experts on Quebec identity, religion, and integration of cultural communities (
minority groups
The term "minority group" has different meanings, depending on the context. According to common usage, it can be defined simply as a group in society with the least number of individuals, or less than half of a population. Usually a minority g ...
). Before formal proceedings began, Bouchard and Taylor said they heard in focus groups across the province that there was insecurity among Quebec's traditional ethnic French population. They believed that hearings would help with educating the public; for instance, they thought the perception of Muslim influence was higher among some groups than is justified by data. Taylor underlined that Quebecers need to show an "openness and generosity of spirit" for 'cultural communities. As well, the report recommended that accommodation be made in public schools to allow students who want to wear religious attire in class, such as the
hijab
Hijab (, ) refers to head coverings worn by Women in Islam, Muslim women. Similar to the mitpaḥat/tichel or Snood (headgear), snood worn by religious married Jewish women, certain Christian head covering, headcoverings worn by some Christian w ...
,
kippah
A (plural: ''kippot''), , or is a brimless Jewish cap, skullcap, usually made of cloth, traditionally worn by Jewish men to fulfill the customary requirement that the Head covering, head be covered. It is the most common type of head-coverin ...
or
turban
A turban (from Persian language, Persian دولبند, ''dolband''; via Middle French ''turbant'') is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Commun ...
, to do so.
The Bouchard–Taylor report recommended that judges,
Crown prosecutor
Crown prosecutor is the title given in a number of jurisdictions to the state prosecutor, the legal party responsible for presenting the case against an individual in a criminal trial. The title is commonly used in Commonwealth realms.
Examples
* ...
s, prison guards and police officers refrain from wearing any religious attire or symbols. "We believe that a majority of Quebecers accept that a uniform prohibition applying to all government employees regardless of the nature of their position is excessive, but want those employees who occupy positions that embody at the highest level the necessary neutrality of the state ... to impose on themselves a form of circumspection concerning the expression of their religious convictions", Bouchard and Taylor wrote.
In 2017, in the aftermath of the
Charter of Quebecois Values debate, Taylor stated that he no longer supports that opinion and said it was misinterpreted by many politicians. The Bouchard–Taylor report deliberately did not include teachers,
civil servants
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...
and health-care professionals among those that should be forbidden to wear religious symbols.
The commission also recommended that the
crucifix
A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...
in the National Assembly, placed above the Speaker's chair by Premier
Maurice Duplessis
Maurice Le Noblet Duplessis, (; April 20, 1890 – September 7, 1959) byname "Le Chef" (, "The Boss"), was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 16th premier of Quebec. A Conservatism in Canada, conservative, Quebec nationalism, ...
, be removed to another part of the building. This recommendation was resisted at the time, but the crucifix was eventually removed in July 2019.
See also
*
Act respecting the laicity of the State
The ''Act respecting the laicity of the State'' (), introduced and commonly referred to as Bill 21 or Law 21, is a statute passed by the National Assembly of Quebec in 2019 which asserts that Quebec is a Secular state, lay state (secular state). ...
*
Hérouxville
References
{{Reflist
Government of Quebec
Civil rights and liberties in Canada